White Cop Says She Fatally Shot Her Black Neighbor In His Apartment After Mistaking It For Her Own
A white Dallas police officer shot and killed her unarmed, Black, male neighbor after she mistook his apartment for her own on Thursday.
During a news conference, Chief U. Renee Hall said the department charged the unidentified officer with manslaughter for the killing of 26-year-old Botham Jean. Details surrounding the shooting remain scarce. The police department has not revealed how the officer entered Jean’s home or if anything was said before she pulled out her weapon and fired.
"Right now there are more questions than we have answers," Hall said during the press conference, as reported the by Associated Press.
It is also unclear if the officer is in custody.
So far, police have only said the unnamed officer returned home in her uniform after her shift on Thursday. She then called dispatch to report that she had shot a man, and later told the responding officers that she believed Jean’s apartment was her own.
The responding officers administered first aid to Jean, a native of St. Lucia who worked for accounting and consulting firm PwC. Jean was then transported to a hospital, where he was pronounced.
Hall said the officer's blood was drawn to be tested for drugs and alcohol. She also said the Texas Rangers will conduct an independent investigation.
When it comes to how the officer gained access to Jean’s apartment, residents of the complex said tenants can access their individual units with a regular key or through a keypad code. Two women who live on the second floor said they heard shouting before the shots were fired.
"It was, like, police talk: 'Open up! Open up!'" 20-year-old Caitlin Simpson told The Dallas Morning News.
Yazmine Hernandez, 20, was studying with Simpson when they heard the commotion.
"We heard cops yelling, but otherwise had no idea what was going on," Hernandez said.